Starting Fires, Fanning Flames: Marzie Price
by fuzzy.nectarines
Summary: Marzie Price is a no-nonsense First Year with a bit of a rebellious streak. She's not your typical protagonist; she's far from perfect. But she'll quickly discover that Hogwarts and the Wizarding World is far from perfect too- even post-war. Join her as she dives deeper into Hogwarts secrets than any other student before her, with a band of friends by her side.


_Hello there, lovely reader,_

_Thanks for taking the time to journey with me to Hogwarts. I've created Marzie not as a self insert, but more of a character who I hope will become a fully formed, fleshed out person, but enough of a blank canvas for you to see yourself in. This chapter in total should take about 5 minutes to read. I'll admit, it's not the most interesting of introductions, but Marzie'll jump straight into some action in the next chapter. I apologize for any mistakes or misspellings, I wrote this around 12:30AM and my mind's really out of it._

Chapter 1

Golden rays of sunlight warmed the bare walls of Marzie's bedroom, which had been emptied out for weeks now. Her walls were usually left plain, but she had packed away almost all of her belongings the day of receiving her Hogwarts letter. It seemed like the room had been abandoned. It was about to be, for it was September first, the day Marzie had been obsessively counting down towards.

The last couple of weeks had seemed like a dream. After sending an owl back to the school, her fate was sealed. She was about to step out of the muggle world, _her_ world, into one of legend and uncertainty. Last night, Marzie's mind was racing with thoughts. Assumptions, expectations, scenarios and daydreams, fears, excitements, hopes, dreams. She only fell asleep after realizing that once aboard the Hogwarts Express, she wouldn't have time to sleep. After all, who would want to sleep through their first magical train ride to Britain's one and only school for witchcraft and wizardry? Certainly not Marzie. She was determined to stay awake, but considering the time she ended up falling asleep, it was going to be a difficult task.

Scratching at the door woke Marzie up. It was her new cat, a hairless one. She had visited Diagon Alley just last week, and bought Krinkle from _The Magical Menagerie_. He was the only hairless cat in the store (they _are _quite exotic, after all), and he seemed to immediately take a liking to her. She was told that magical animals tended to be a little different than muggle ones. Either they were stronger and lived longer, had heightened senses, or possessed more intelligence. To Marzie, the rest just seemed like normal cats. Krinkle, though, had been attempting to eat his tail when she walked into the store. His first impression on her definitely… stuck. Every day after bringing him home, he had scratched at her door at precisely 7:00 in the morning, desperate for affection. It seemed like he had some magic in him after all.

Marzie rolled over in bed, spitting hair out of her mouth. She smiled. The scratching meant it was 7:00, just four hours before she needed to catch the train. The drive to the station was a good three hours away, but luckily, Marzie had done the bulk of her packing and planning weeks in advance. Squinting against the morning light, she clumsily made her way to the door and cracked it open, allowing a hyperactive Krinkle to shoot through and make himself comfortable on her pillow. Yawning, Marzie figured it was a good time to start the day.

Humming to herself, she got dressed in simple clothes which would be easy to wear under her robes- some plain black pants, and a white cotton tee shirt. It was a classic, and Marzie wasn't the type to fix what wasn't broken. She threw the rest of the clothes in her luggage, which she brought to the front door. Krinkle quickly followed by her heels, down the stairs, through the hallway, never stopping (even in the kitchen, past his food bowl!) Marzie could hardly wait.

Making herself a bit of toast, she waited impatiently for her parents to wake up and finish getting ready. As she waited, she flipped through biographies of some of the most famous witches and wizards- Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, _Hermione Granger_. The three of them were a subject of fascination for Marzie. In just a few hours, she would be attending the same school they had all been too. She'd be walking down the same hallways, eating the same food, learning with the same teachers. Marzie had always been an organized person- with her detailed ten year plan and thick, color coded agenda- but by entering the wizarding world, she was relinquishing her idea of what was normal. That's why she looked up to Mrs. Granger so much. Mrs. Granger was a muggle born, just like her, with the same determination and grit and passion that Marzie saw in herself. She wanted to be just like Hermione; clever, charming, and successful.

That's it. It was 7:30, and she wanted to be at the station at least twenty minutes early, in case she couldn't find the train. Harry Potter himself was said to have struggled to find the platform, _so it must've been hard to find,_ Marzie had convinced herself.

"Mom! Dad! Get up, right now! We've got to leave in ten minutes! Ten. Minutes." Marzie shouted up the stairs, already running towards the laundry room to grab a pair of socks. She knew that once both her parents were awake, the chaos would really begin.

"May? What time is it?" Marzie heard her mom's voice quietly, all the way from the second floor.

"It's 7:10, mom. Simple subtraction. Now come on! We seriously have to get going!." Marzie liked to be early, but this time, she thought she might not be. "It'll be okay," she whispered to herself reassuringly, leaning forward to rest her head between her hands. "Everything will work out. Mom and Dad know what they're doing." Did they, though? Marzie wasn't completely convinced, but a positive mindset was still better than a negative one.

Finally, her parents made it downstairs. It was 7:15. Bustling around the kitchen to fill water bottles and brew coffee and make a quick breakfast; the kitchen was chaotic (and Marzie didn't like chaotic at all.) After rushing her parents for another good five minutes, her family made it to the car. Marzie sat in the back seat with Krinkle by her side, listening to her father as he started the engine and her mother as she slammed the lid of the trunk down, sealing away Marzie's belongings for the next three hours. Marzie figured now would be a good time to break out the noise cancelling headphones, and she was correct. Right on schedule, as soon as everyone was situated and sitting down, her parents started nagging each other for taking too long in the morning. Headphones were the best way to block it out, and make sure that she didn't get dragged into it either.

The car ride was much too short. It was supposed to be a nice, long block of time which would allow Marzie to think. And boy, did she have a lot to think about. Hogwarts would be a fresh start for her. She would get to choose who she wanted to be. Pure-blooded wizards might already have friends, but Marzie would get a restart. She could totally change. And that excited her.

When the car pulled up to King's Cross Station, Marzie no longer felt any lingering fear. She was Marzie Price, and she was going to set the wizarding world on fire.


End file.
